Ohio EPA Awards Environmental Excellence

Ohio EPA Director Craig W. Bulter is at Progressive Field this afternoon to present 10 Ohio organizations with Encouraging Environmental Excellence (E3) Awards. The E3 program recognizes businesses, non-profits, and government agencies in the Buckeye State for going above and beyond to demonstrate environmental excellence.

TimkenSteel Water Treatment Plant, Canton – TimkenSteel’s water treatment plant receives, cleans and returns wastewater from the Harrison, Gambrinus and Faircrest plants. Now using an alternative to their water treatment coagulant, chemical use is down 90 percent or 777,000 pounds per year. Water treatment solids and dryer filter cake have been reduced by more than two million pounds annually.

University Hospital, Cleveland – University Hospitals’ Case Medical Center (UHCMC) has created a sustainability department, council and committees. The organization’s annual recycling volume has increased by 270 percent and recycling costs are down 46 percent – all over a four year span. By donating unused equipment and medical supplies for humanitarian relief, 38,000 pounds of waste is no longer directed to landfills.

GOJO Industries, Cuyahoga Falls – Between 2010 and 2013, GOJO reduced water usage by 40 percent, solid waste by 36 percent and greenhouse emissions by 46 percent. In 2013, by eliminating more than 9,000 pounds of hazardous wastes, the company changed its status from large to small quantity generator.

Industry Products Company, Piqua – In 2012-2013, the company recycled 70 percent of its waste, even incorporating some of its recycled materials into new products. Rewiring buildings and replacing lights saved IPC 36 percent in energy use, even as the business grew. Monitoring propane lift truck emissions reduces carbon dioxide (CO2) by 122 tons.

Cleveland Indians, Cleveland – In 2007, the Indians became the first American League team to install solar panels at their home ballpark (42 panels generate 15,000 kWh of energy per year). In 2014, the Indians recycled 35 tons of aluminum and plastic, 63 tons of paper and 137 tons of cardboard. Last year, the organization composted 86 tons of food scraps through an anaerobic digestion system which creates methane gas that is sold to a local power company. Leftover product can be used as a natural fertilizer for fields in Northeast Ohio. In addition, last year 14,550 pounds of fry oil was recycled and converted to biofuel and 5,918 pounds of food was donated to a local food bank.

ID Images LLC, Brunswick – Through aggressive programs to minimize waste, ID Images increased the use of recyclable materials and reduced the company’s landfill trash by 37 percent. By minimizing the paper width needed to convert their products and using an industrial shredder that converts waste material into packing for finished products, ID Images reduces costs from purchasing packing materials.

Two organizations are being recognized for E3 Silver:

GKN Driveline, Bowling Green – Through process modification, GKN generates no hazardous waste at the site and aims to become a zero-waste facility (currently achieving a recycling rate of 99 percent). The company reduced coolant waste in its machining process by separating contaminated coolant and metal chips more efficiently. By recycling coolant, less water is both used and discharged and GKN has lower disposal costs.

For more information about Ohio EPA’s Encouraging Environmental Excellence Program and the three levels of recognition, visit www.epa.ohio.gov/ohioE3.aspx or call (800) 329-7518.

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The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency was created in 1972 to consolidate efforts to protect and improve air quality, water quality and waste management in Ohio. Since then, air pollutants dropped by as much as 90 percent; large rivers meeting standards improved from 21 percent to 89 percent; and hundreds of polluting, open dumps were replaced with engineered landfills and an increased emphasis on waste reduction and recycling.